The Case
by VisualIDentificationZeta
Summary: PAIRING: um, you REALLY need to ask? Just check out the timeline and tell me if there's REALLY anything else possible with the state of the show back then... m/f SUMMARY: look for it inside.
1. Chapter 1

TITLE: The Case

AUTHOR: VIDZ

PAIRING: um, you REALLY need to ask? Just check out the timeline and tell me if there's REALLY anything else possible with the state of the show back then...

TIMELINE: late season 9

DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc of the TV show JAG are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this fic. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: you don't get any, hehe.

SUMMARY: I'm running out of title and summary ideas, so bear with me. Anyway, Chegwidden gets a request for help on a case, one two members of his staff are suitable for and two aren't.

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"Okay, people, listen up!" the words rewarded the Admiral with his officers' undivided attention "We've got a new case."

Everyone took their places around the conference table as Chegwidden took out a folder "NCIS asked for our help on this one."

Seeing everyone was listening he summed up the case "A private clinic in Denver has had an alarming rate of still-births over the last 3 years. Authorities weren't paying attention to it until a Lieutenant Commander at the Navy Operational Support Center in Denver alerted the police and NCIS of his suspicion of having been lied about his daughter being still-born."

Silence reigned among them as they listened appalled. Harm sent Bud a sympathetic glance as the younger man paled in pain before reddening in fury.

"Since Navy personnel was affected the NCIS has been cooperating with the Denver police for the last year and they're close to starting arrests. There's just one last task to accomplish, they need to get the perps red-handed. That's why they've established contact, faking a married couple who wants to buy a baby. And they need someone to play that couple... Since the contact has been so far through intermediates, telephone and email the suspects haven't met the prospective buyers face-to-face yet, which works in our favor as the two Detectives, partners, a man and woman, the original choice for the couple, had just recently been on TV for police brutality. Naturally, they were removed from the case from fear they'd be recognized and after the task force has given it some thought, they'd decided someone who's vibes didn't scream 'Cops!' would be the best choice. They need someone who is not a cop, but who is even more observant and law-aware than a cop, so they naturally thought of us." Chegwidden grinned "I want only the best on this case, that's why I kept it for this office instead of giving it to one closer to Denver."

"The choice for the man falls automatically on you, Mr Rabb, not only because you're easy-going and lax enough not to be immediately spotted as military," Harm looked embarrassed, not having missed the slight rebuke, but wasn't about to change who he was "but also because you're the only male officer in this office who could take on a mission like this and do it convincingly, not just because of your past experience in undercover ops. Though, you can sit this one out if you don't want to." Chegwidden said in a shocking display of empathy "Considering your personal experiences with the NCIS I think it's fair to give you that option."

Harm grimaced, thinking back to Agents Turkey and Gibbs.

"It's okay, sir, I'll take the case. Whatever beef I may have with the NCIS and no matter how incompetent I think they are, it doesn't change the fact that there are innocent victims involved in this."

Chegwidden nodded, satisfied, having expected nothing less from the man.

Mac, not wanting to miss the chance to keep Harm on a string and interested, immediately piped-up "Don't worry, sir, the CDR and I will be on the first flight to Colorado tomorrow morning."

Harm rolled his eyes and sighed inwardly. ' Why does she keep doing this? She herself said there will never be an us, but she still tries to insinuate herself in my life, only to pull back again when I reach out to her.'

"Not so fast, LtCol." Chegwidden's words stopped everyone cold and perked up Harm's ears, while Mac only looked stupefied.

"We want to present them with a happily married couple, not one in the middle of a nasty, messy divorce, LtCol." rejected Chegwidden Mac's offer, causing Harm to release a silent breath of relief and Mac to glare down at the table, angry.

Bud snickered at his boss' reply, but was immediately quieted by the death glare Mac sent him.

"There was really no choice who to select if the suspects are to believe the story." he turned to his right "The rest of the female staff falls out of the running because I don't think the CDR would feel comfortable enough with either of them to pull off the husband routine. The LtCol doesn't qualify because of the stated reasons, LTJG Sims is not only married, but I'm not about to put her through that, so that leaves only one person. Coates, you're a Yeoman, not supposed to go on cases, into dangeorus situations and face suspects in their field. Nobody will hold it against you if you decline, but you are the one I thought of as the best choce for the job."

Jen was no less surprised than the rest of the staff who turned to look at her in shock, her wide eyes aimed straight at her boss. Did she want to...

For an eternity, Jen was at an impasse. While the prospect of working tightly with the Commander and even playing his wife was alluring, she'd already had more action in her life than she wanted for as long as she lived. Sinking her eyes she deliberated, even though she knew she'd already made her decision. Sure, she wasn't looking forward to going into danger and she wasn't arrogant enough to think she would be able to protect Harm if need be, but the thought of the families broken by these greedy people left her no choice. How would she feel if someone had stolen her and Harm's... er... ' Stop that, Jen.' she reprimanded herself ' Don't get ahead of yourself. He doesn't see you like that, remember? Plus, there are still the regs even if he does feel the same...'

To get back to the thought... how would she feel if someone had stolen her baby and told her it had died, just to sell it for a nice price? She knew she'd want justice and her baby back if it could be done.

"I'll do it."

"Good." Chegwidden smiled in satisfaction, having been proven he could rely on his people to do the right thing.

"You leave tomorrow, everything you need to know is in these folders." he passed one to each of them "If anything changed, the NCIS SAC will brief you on your arrival. I don't think I need to specially remind you to pack lightly and nothing that would give your military status away." He received agreeing nods.

"Good. As soon as we're done with this staff meeting you're cleared to secure for the day and go home to get ready. Now that that's settled, let's get back to the regular order of business. Mr Roberts, you get..."

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	2. Chapter 2

Check this out and let me know what you think (IMHO their singing is amazing; without the spaces):

http://www. youtube. com/watch?v=QykDz7MP5x4

Wow, was very pleasantly surprised by your positive reaction to this fic, especially after the poor reception of the last chapter of "Making a commitment".

Harm and Jen's pretend-family-name is from one of the top 5 computer games of all times: Archimedean Dynasty.

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The meeting was over and everyone stood to attention before moving to leave when they were halted by the order.

"Rabb. Coates. Stay behind."

Harm and Jen's gazes met in mutual confusion what more could he want, painfully aware of the looks the others were shooting them as they filed out of the room.

"Aye aye, sir."

The Admiral took a minute to gather his thoughts, all the while the newly conscripted couple stood nervously at attention.

"The only reason I paired you two up for this mission is because I know you never overstepped the restrictions posted by your ranks, at least not anymore than you did by being neighbors." the Admiral stated, not looking up at them "I trust you won't do anything to disgrace yourself and the Navy. Don't betray that trust." He finally looked up at them at this point and they both flinched at the depth of meaning in the old man's gaze.

"That is all for now."

Harm and Jen stood to attention and moved to the exit.

"But," his voice stopped them just as Harm was about to open the door for Jen "if at any point in time you two think we have something to talk about, arrangements we need to make, don't hesitate to come to me. Don't do anything foolish like sacrificing your careers or sacrificing your chance at happiness for anything. Come to me. Your separate misery and unhappiness over your lives has been strong enough to be felt this last year and if it helps make my life a little easier I'll help make _your _lives better."

Harm and Jen gaped at him for a second before echoing "Aye, sir." and leaving the room, still stunned.

The Admiral's eyes, trained at the paperwork in front of him, had long since lost focus as he was wondering if they'd ever come to him, hoping they would. They were both good people and it would be a shame if they were to end up spending the rest of their lives alone or in dysfunctional relationships with others that would make them miserable, as Harm was destined to if he continued to wait for LtCol MacKenzie, hoping she would deign to divert from other men to him for a moment the attention she so generously gave to those men. Coates, he feared, would end up alone as she wasn't the kind of person to commit to one person while her heart was another's and it was plainly obvious to everyone who saw them together that the young, shy woman was in love with the Commander. It would be a real shame and lost as she had so muh to offer, so much love to give, they both did. No matter what their difference in ages and ranks were, AJ knew they would make a good couple, a well-functioning couple.

And not for the first time in his life did he wonder how many lives, how many chances for happiness, had fraternization regulations destroyed, once again glad he'd decided to retire, having long since lost belief in laws he was to enforce.

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"Breathe, Jen." advised Harm, looking at his pretend-wife, who looked like she was about to pass out.

Harm himself was worried a little about how everything would work out, if the suspects would buy their story, but contrary to Jen he had years of experience in both dangerous situations and occasional subterfuge work to fall back on to steady himself and not to let any anxiety show.

With this being Jen's first case and with the knowledge of just how much was at stake everything was weighing that much more on her, too much not to let it on. Large eyes, black in anxiety, looked up at him from a face that was normally a lovely bronze, but was now deathly pale.

If it wasn't too late Harm would've aborted the mission, as it was he would have to do something quickly before Jen needed medical attention, for she had taken his advice too seriously and was now hyperventilating. Yet, Jen needed to do this, for herself, to prove to herself she could and to gain experience so she would be able to handle it better if she would have to do anything like this again later.

"Calm down, Jen, don't pass out on me." he prodded her, trying to inject a little humor, rewarded when she gave a tremulous little laugh.

Mindful of the bugs and hidden cameras they were wearing Harm, with a finger under her chin, lifted her eyes to his.

"You okay?" Stupid question, but he wanted to give her the chance to regain her composure and save face.

"Yeah, I'm okay." she assured him, sighing and leaning her forehead gratefully when he slipped his arms loosely around her in comfort, his embrace instantly calming her down.

Even though they weren't pressed against each other and the only body contact they had was through their arms and where Jen's forehead was leaning on him, he knew they were walking dangerously closely to the line, but also knew a lot depended on them pulling this through. Besides, the added, but not intended, effect was to further solidify their cover as a married couple. No-one would find anything wrong with a husband comforting his wife, especially not the people who thought they knew why she was anxious, namely the perps, not even the people listening in via the wires, who knew exactly what was at stake.

Yet none of that mattered to Harm, those weren't the reasons he was doing his utmost to offer Jen emotional support.

Hearing someone approaching them they separated slowly, holding gazes until they weren't touching anymore, before looking at the newcomer.

"Mr and Mrs Vanderwaal?" a woman of average height, dark haired, groomed - obviously loaded with money, extended her hand in greeting, cold, calculating eyes giving them a once-over "Good to finally meet you."

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Jen was looking down at the small baby in her arms in wonder. The transaction had gone through without a hitch and now Mr and Mrs Vanderwaal were the new parents to a 6 days old baby boy.

They were waiting for the task force to arrive, take their statements and reports and to put the baby through DNA testing to confirm it's parentage. As a safety precaution in case the Vanderwaals were being observed the NCIS and the police would be meeting them at a location 30 miles away and only the next day. Until then Harm and Jen were to take care of the baby and continue the cover of a married couple who'd just adopted a child.

He still had to stiffle the grin at the surprised and slightly embarrassed look Jen had on her lovely face when the elderly desk-clerk had commented on how quickly after having given birth Jen had regained her figure. It had taken everything Harm had had in him to stop himself from instinctively checking out the figure in question, having been a silent appreciator of it for a long time, and then not to start chuckling when Jen, blushing, awkwardly thanked the old woman for the compliment. He really should've stopped being surprised at how ignorant Jen was of her beauty, not acknowledging it since she never used it for her own gain, relying on her intellect and skill to get ahead in life, how surprised and flustered she always was when other people compliment her looks. She never tried to put herself in the spotlight, uncomfortable in it, preferring the quiet anonimity, preferring to be recognized for her intelligence and achievements rather than how she looked. She was one of the lucky minority blessed with best of all three worlds: intelligence, physical beauty and beauty of the heart and soul.

The man she ended up marrying, giving children to, would be the luckiest son of a bitch on the planet, was a fact Harm had been aware of for years.

Harm walked in from the bedroom where he'd changed his clothes, stopping at the sight before him. If this was a painting it would've been worthy of Michelangelo. The small baby was gurgling and flailing about with chubby limbs, secure in the careful arms of a woman with a Mona Lisa smile on her lips. A smile Jen wasn't even aware of as she played with the baby.

Feeling something squeeze in his chest Harm sighed heavily, knowing that unlike the previous night they would have to share the suite tonight, only one thought in his mind ' This is going to be a looong night.'

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	3. Chapter 3

Great, ff. net has again had a mood swing and the separation lines of X have gone missing from my fics. And before that, the horizontal lines went missing (because of which I switched over to the X system). *rolls eyes* What the heck are they doing? With every "update" this site gets even more annoying quirks.

Hm, the interest in this fic has fallen almost by half. How come?

**Thanks** to my lovely reviewers **Bglswrth454, carolfd, Rittanicus, Michelle UK, anon **(hey, you're back, long time no see! Nice to see you again!) and **Lynnp** (my oldest - not by age, lol - and most faithful supporter, without whom I would've given up writing years ago - thank you for still sticking with me Lynn!) and a much **huger thanks** to my lovely fiancee **Eva**, for bringing light to my life when I was starting to think it would stay dark forever.

Wonder if this new system will show...

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He'd had no idea how right he'd been. As he'd said, a long night, yet in a completely different way than he'd expected.

By 0400, which was the third time they'd been dragged out of dead-sleep by cries, even Jen's enthusiasm and wonder had been tempered in the face of sheer exhaustion. With having had no prior experience with children, nor having had 9 months to acclimate to crazy sleeping schedules, they had been ill prepared to deal with a constantly crying, sleepless, tireless newborn.

There had been no awkward decision about what to do regarding sleeping arrangements since the couch was too small for Harm and big enough for Jen and Harm's back had been making itself known. As it was, Harm barely fit on the bed, even with lying diagonally across it. Not that either of them was doing much quality sleeping, not with a week-old baby being thrust into yet another new situation, new people, new place. To put it plainly, the only time the little boy slept was when he exhausted himself into a fitful slumber with his constant crying, only to awaken again all too soon.

Needless to say, Harm and Jen were experiencing another side of parenthood, one not so well-publicized, much less cute.

Privately Harm wondered why anyone sane would want to inflict such a thing as parenthood on themselves.

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Putting their luggage into their rental car Harm turned around to notice Jen still at the curb, looking in the direction the NCIS had disappeared in, only 10 minutes ago.

She stood mere 10 feet away, but was giving off such a lonely, miserable vibe as if she was standing on a deserted island, thousands of miles from the nearest human, facing certain extinction, only after a lonely, miserable life.

Closing the boot Harm sighed and leaned against the car for a moment, hanging his head and closing his eyes.

He hadn't had even an inkling this would be so hard on her, not having expected her to bond so quickly with the baby they'd known for only a few hours before it had left their lives for good again.

Sure, he'd always known she had a soft spot for children, but he'd hoped, quite naively he admitted to himself, that these few hours they'd been meant to take care of the child wouldn't be enough for her to get attached so much she'd feel the loss when she had to give it back.

He didn't know how to help Jen, how to get her out of her funk, but he had to at least try. Knowing they still had plenty of time he joined her on the curb, steeling himself up.

Coming to a halt a step behind her he lowered his large hand on her slim shoulder, squeezing it gently, silent in support, the same kind Jen had always so generously, freely, unquestioningly given him without him even having to ask for it.

It was a few minutes before she spoke, sad eyes looking down at the ground "We cared for him for less than a day, but already I feel as if something is missing from me."

Harm searched feverishly for the right thing to say.

"It's okay to feel that way, but we had to give him back, Jen, he's got parents who've been missing him."

Large, dark eyes were suddenly directed at Harm "I know and I was ready for that so I tried not to get too attached, but... my arms feel somehow... empty. You know what I mean?" she shook her head, exasperated at not knowing how to put it, since she didn't even know what she was feeling, herself.

Aaahhhh. So it wasn't about missing that specific baby, but missing **a** baby.

"Women and your ticking clocks." Harm chuckled in gentle amusement, shaking his head. He didn't dwell much on the fact that he didn't feel any pain at the what-could've-been with another woman who had talked to him about blaring biological clocks, that possibility had been killed long ago, even before Paraguay "You want one." it wasn't a question.

"Yeah." Jen sighed wistfully, folding her arms to her chest, not liking how empty they felt "It's strange. They're so much work, such a large investment of... everything, time, money, energy, love,... and really not much return in the first few months, but... but..." gesturing with her arms helplessly, unable to explain, Jen finally gave up and sighed in defeat.

"It somehow makes it worth while?" supplied Harm.

"Yeah." she nodded, happy he understood what she was trying to say "They smell badly, they're noisy, they spit and throw up on you, they don't let you sleep, all they do is scream, fill their diapers, eat and sleep in that order of importance, you can't go anywhere without dragging a whole trunk-load of stuff with you, you don't have any freedom anymore, they're extremely expensive, take up all the attention and energy but give nothing back, but somehow, in some strange way, they're worth it."

"It's called 'parental love', Jen." Harm mused "Or 'parental instinct'. Both, either, I don't know. But the thing is this is nature's way of insuring the survival of the species because otherwise it's doubtful any baby would've survived infancy."

Jen sighed, her exhaustion preventing her from being amused at Harm's joke. The theory wasn't something one could share with anyone but someone very emotionally close, since it was very politically incorrect. Yet, the fact that she was the one Harm had shared it with filled Jen with warmth because it spoke of their closeness, the strength of their friendship and their emotional closeness. She was relieved she wasn't the only one in this friendship feeling as if they could confide everything in the other.

"Thank you, Harm." she whispered into the wind, leaning gently back against his solid build.

He didn't have to ask what she was thanking him for, because he was sure it was what he was thankful her for, every day of his life, for friendship, unconditional support, trust, belief, everything another person can give you that allows you to soar to the skies and feel the safety of solid ground underneath your feet at the same time.

Harm squeezed her shoulder gently, smiling down at her, coming to a decision he now acknowledged he should've come to a long time ago, back when he'd first noticed the young woman's crush for him had deepened and evolved into something more solid, true.

"Then, when we get back to the HQ, I think we should have a talk with the Admiral." he said softly, looking down at her.

Her blinding smile was all the answer he needed.

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